LOS ANGELES – When the smoke cleared and the dust settled, Los Angeles Lakers big man Jackson Hayes failed to advance to the final round of the Slam Dunk Contest at NBA All-Star Weekend. After a combined score of 91.8 in the first round, Hayes was defeated by Miami Heat wing Keshad Johnson and San Antonio Spurs rookie Carter Bryant for the final dunk-off.
After the end of the Slam Dunk Contest, Jackson Hayes talked about whether or not he would participate in the Slam Dunk Contest again. As the oldest player in this year's event, he hasn't completely closed the door on another appearance, although that seems highly unlikely.
Hayes said, "This is my seventh year in the NBA, I'll be in my eighth next year. You can see these young guys have more legs. I went up for my first dunk, I felt it right in my knees." "I don't think so. It was fun to do it and say I did it, but I don't know. I'm not going to turn down the dunk contest completely, but probably not. I'd rather be in Hawaii right now."
Each participant received two dunk attempts in the first round, with Hayes' second attempt looking like it was a better option for him to advance. For his first dunk, he tried to take off from the free-throw line, but it appears he made a jump mistake and ended up flying just inside the line, which was essentially just a fastbreak dunk.
His second dunk really had people out of their seats when he threw the ball in front of him, tossed it in the air from one hand to the other, tossed it back to the other hand between his legs and dunked.
Jackson Hayes taps it towards him and goes between the legs for his second slam @To slam dunk 😤
Tap to watch: https://t.co/BpnjnxQ8vC pic.twitter.com/pBALENoNJ0
- NBA (@NBA) 15 February 2026
Hayes became the sixth Lakers player to participate in the Dunk Contest, following Michael Cooper, Antonio Harvey, Kobe Bryant, Shannon Brown and Dwight Howard, respectively. Bryant is the only Laker to win the Dunk Contest.
Hayes is really known for his in-game dunks this season, catching a lob from Luka Doncic and throwing down an impressive Eastbay dunk during the Lakers' win against the Chicago Bulls on January 26.
This is Hayes' third season with the Lakers after re-signing a one-year contract last offseason. He originally signed with the Lakers as a free agent in 2023 after four seasons with the New Orleans Pelicans.
This year, Hayes has appeared in 45 games, including seven starts, averaging a little over 17 minutes per game. He is averaging 6.9 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.0 steals while shooting 77.2 percent from the field.
